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PKESKNTCD BY 



COLONEL WILLIAM PKESOOTT; 



AND 



GROTON SOLDIEllS IN Till: liATTLE 
OF BUNKER HILL 



BY 



SAMUEL ABBOTT GREEN 

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CAMBRIDGE: 
JOHN WILSON AND SON. 

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11IU9. 






From the 

Proceedings of the Massachusetts Historical Society 

FOR November, 1909. 



Gift 

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COLONEL WILLIAM PRESCOTT; 

AND 

GROTON SOLDIERS IN THE BATTLE 
OF BUNKER HILL 



At a meeting of the Massachusetts Historical 
Society held in Boston on Thursday, November 11, 
1909, Dr. Samuel A. Green read the following paper : 

The French and Indian War was the school where the chief 
actors in the Revolution learned their first lessons. Artenias 
Ward, who was the commander-in-chief of the American 
army until the arrival of Washington at Cambridge, on 
July 3, 1775 ; Richard Gridley, tlie engineer who laid out 
the works on Bunker Hill and planned the fortifications 
around Boston ; and William Preseott, the commander at the 
Battle, — these officers and many others received their early 
military education during this period. The French and 
Indian War was the last and severest of the intercolonial 
struggles, and the Indians fought on each side, though mostly 
with the French and against the English. The first conflict 
of arms took place in May, 1754, and the war continued until 
a treaty of peace was made in February, 1763. 

Among the manuscripts belonging to the Historical Society 
is a paper which gives the names of twent3'-five men who 
were enlisted by William Preseott in a regiment to be em- 
ployed for the removal of the Acadians, though no place of 
enlistment is given. To any one familiar with the home 
of Preseott the omission to mention the place of enlistment 



is of little importance, as the family names of the men fur- 
nish the desired information. Without doubt they all be- 
longed in Groton and its neighborhood, and there are many 
descendants still living there. Job Shattuck, whose name 
appears in the list, thirty years later became a conspicuous 
character in Shays's Rebellion. It has long been known that 
William Prescott was a lieutenant in the Provincial army 
sent in the spring of 1755 to remove the neutral French from 
Nova Scotia ; but this record shows that he had already been 
active in enlisting men for that purpose. At that period of 
time the township of Groton spread over a much larger terri- 
tory than it now covers, but since then by legislative enact- 
ment it has been materially dismembered and has lost several 
towns from the original grant. One half of the men mentioned 
in this list served in the War for Independence ; and, of course, 
during these intervening years others had died. 

The aforesaid paper is found in a volume marked on the 
back " Winslow Papers 1737-1755 " (p. 87) ; and the list of 
names is as follows : 

A List of the Men Inlisted by William Prescott in a Regiment of 
foot to be Employed for the Removal of the French lucroachments in 
North America Whereof His Excellency William Shirley Esq^ is 
Colonel and John Winslow Esq"" Lieutenant Colonel 

Isaac Green Phinehas Barron 

William Spaulding JunI James Lessley 

Eleazer Spaulding John Lessley 

John Kemp Jun'; George Lessley 

Jabez Kemp Amos Whiting 

Jonathan Shedd Eliphalet Dinsmore 

William Shedd Asa Dinsmore 

Eleazer Whipple Jonathan Melvin 

Isaac Williams Jun" Job Shattock 

Samuel Fisk Simeon Lakin 

Nathaniel Sartwell Abraham Boyeuten 

Simon Lakin Moses Woods 

Oliver Eliot 

February 28^1' 1755 

It was in the spring of 1755 that the territory of Acadia, or 
Nova Scotia, fell under British authority; and the conquest 
was followed by a terrible act of cruelty and violence. The 
simple Acadians, unsuspicious of any untoward designs of the 



English leaders, were assembled in their churches in obedi- 
ence to military proclamation ; and thence, without being 
allowed to return to their homes, were driven at the point of 
the bayonet aboard ship to be scattered through the English 
colonies in America. This was done with so little regard to 
humanity that in many instances wives were separated from 
husbands and children from parents, never to see one another 
again. It was upon an incident connected with tl)is act of 
tyranny that Longfellow's poem of " Evangeline " is founded. 
Our pity for these unfortunate people will be stronger when 
we reflect that in their exile they were miserably poor, among 
a race who spoke a strange language, followed other customs 
and abominated their religion. 

In the report of a Committee, dated April 18, 1761, which 
was appointed by the (ieneral Court to distril)ute French 
Neutrals among the towns of IVIiddlesex County (Massachu- 
setts Archives, XXIV. 468) it is stated that they have assigned to 

Groton Rain Bobbin [aged] 37 

Marg' his wife 39 

John his son 13 

Matturen D" 11 

Joseph D" 8 

Eliz 5 weeks 

Pepperil Marg" Marichal 18 

Mary Bobbin daugh' of Rain Bobbin 3 

Towusend Paul Oliver Bobbin 7 
Peter Bobbin sou to Rain Bobbin of Groton 5 

The surname, perhaps, is spelled wrong, as people in those 
days were not used to writing foreign words ; very likely it 
should have been Beaubien. Other families were sent at the 
same time to Dunstable, Westford, and Littleton. 

In connection with the reference in this paper to William 
Prescott, it may be of interest to note a fact that bears closely 
on the question of the commandership at the Battle of Bun- 
ker Hill. The circumstances surrounding the army at the 
beginning of the Revolution were such that there may have 
been only slight formality in assigning a command, but there 
is no evidence that Prescott ever received any order from 
others in that memorable engagement, while he himself acted 
under orders from General Ward. In modern times certain 



6 

captious critics liave tried to deprive the old Revolutionary 
soldier of the credit of this command ; but it was the univer- 
sal testimony of his array comrades, that the supreme authority 
in that action rested with him alone. The fact alluded to at 
the beginning of this paragraph is found in a letter from Gen- 
eral Ward to John Adams, written four months after the 
battle was fought ; and by the conitesy of the Adams family 
I am enabled now to print it, as follows : 

RoxBURY Camp, October 23, 1775. 

SiK, — Yesterday I Rec'^. your favour of the fifth Instant, a week 
after the arival of M' Lynch/ although I had been twice in his company 
before. I have indeavoured to treat the Gentlemen Committe with 
Decency and Politeness, I invited them to Roxbury twice. The day 
after I invited them M'. Lynch came to Roxbury, but did not dine 
with me, he being Ingaged to dine with Genl. Washington as he said. 
The next day I was at Cambridge, and mentioned to Washington his 
and the Com''''' dining with me. He answered they could not untill 
they had finished their business and he would let me know when they 
would come and dine with me. Major [Samuel] Osgood informs me 
Gen'. Washington told the Com'"'' that I depended on their dining with 
me this day. 

This day Gen'. Gates wrote to the field officers of y" Connecticot 
forces, that the Com""-' did accept their invitation to dine with them, and 
accordingly came and dined with them. When they came I informed 
them I expected they would have dined with me, they said they thought 
till then, that accepting of the one invitation, was accepting the other ; 
that is they were one and y'' same invitation. I afterward invited them 
to dine with me tomorrow. They told me if they did not set out on 
their Journey they were Ingaged to dine with Gen'. Putnam. I think 
I have given a true state of facts, and now Judge whither, I have been 
deficient in inviting, and whither I have not been 111 treated. What 
would not some men do, to make this Colony and the Inhabitants 
thereof appear contemptible? 

Oct^ 30, 1775. 
They do not boast so much of the Riflemen as heretofore Gen'. 
Washington has said he wished they had never come ; Gen' Lee has 
damned them and wished them all in Boston ; Gen' Gates has said, if 
any capital movement was about to be made the Riflemen must be 
moved from this Camp. 

1 Thomas Lynch, member of the Continental Congress from South Carolina 
and at tiiis time oneof the special committee sent by Congress to report upon the 
army. The other members of the committee were Benjamin Franklin and 
Benjamin Harrison. 



I am in great concern about the raising a new army, for the Genious 
of this people is (liferent from those to the southward. Our people 
are Jealous, and are not Inclineable to act upon an Implicit faith, they 
CImse to see and Judge for themselves. They remember what was 
said of them by some that came from the Southward last summer, 
whicli makes them backward in Inlisting or manifesting a willingness to 
Inlist. 

Its my opinion we should have began a month ago to Ingage men 
for another Campain. If the present armys time should be out, and 
no other secured I fear the P^nemy will take advantage thereof. I wish 
Gen'. Frye might be provided for, I think him a good man for the ser- 
vice, and am very sorry he has not been provided for by the Continen 
tal Congress before this time. 

Some haoc said hard tilings of the officers belonging to this Colony, 
and despised them, but I think as mean as they have represented them to 
be, there has been no one action 7oith the enemy, witich has not been con- 
ducted by an officer of this Colony, except that at Chelsea, tchich loas con- 
ducted by GenK Putnam. [Italics mine.] 

I am this moment informed, that Major Tupper of this Colony and 
off the army hath seized two vessels at the Vineyard loaded with oyl, 
Belonging to [Benjamin M.] Holmes, and [John] ColRii in Boston two 
Tories, and has Carried them into Plymouth, he having been dispatched 
for that purpose. He now desires to resign his command in the army, 
and take the command of one of those vessels, when fitted out for a 
Privateer. 

You mentioned the scene is thickning, I hope as that thickens our 
deliverance approaches. I have no doubt, but we shall linally come off 
victorious, if we continue persevering. There has not been one action 
with the enemy, without a signal appearance of Divine Providence iu 
our favour. If so what reason can we have to doubt of success more 
than when we began. 

I should have wrote you before, but was prevented by Indisposition 
and frequent avocations of a publick nature, and probable you may 
think I had better have spent by [my] time some other way than in 
writing the above. I hope you will excuse all the foregoing Inaccura- 
cies and honor me with a line, in the mean time 1 rest your affectionate 
friend and humble servant 

Art EM AS Ward. 
Honorable John Adams Esq. 

The pith of the evidence lies in Ward's statement that every 
action with the enemy thus far has been conducted by an 
officer of this Colony, except that at Chelsea, when Putnam 
was in command. The statement is found in the fourth 
paragraph of that part of the letter which is dated October 30, 



8 

and says inferentially that Putnam did not command on 
June 17. In the reprint this paragraph has been italicized. 
No better authority on this question could be given than 
General Ward, as he was the commander of the Provincial 
army at the time of the Battle of Bunker Hill, and continued 
as such until the arrival of General Washington on July 3. 
The skirmish at Chelsea took place on May 27, three weeks 
before the action on Bunker Hill. 

Interested for various reasons in the town of Groton I am 
desirous that the record of her soldiers, who took part in the 
battle, should be correctly made ; and to that end with no 
apology I offer the following facts. 

One commissioned officer and ten enlisted men, residents 
of Groton, were either killed or mortally wounded in the 
battle. The roll of honor comprises the names of Lieutenant 
Amaziah Fassett, who fell wounded and died a prisoner in 
Boston, a short time later, on July 5 ; Sergeant Benjamin 
Prescott, eldest son of the Hon. James Prescott, and nephew 
of Colonel William Prescott, the commander on the American 
side ; and Privates Abraham Blood, Chambers Corey, James 
Dodge, Peter Fisk, Stephen Foster, Simon Hobart, Jonathan 
Jenkins, Robert Parker, and Benjamin Woods. 

This loss was the largest suffered by any one town in the 
battle, and shows the patriotic character of the citizens at that 
period. These soldiers were serving in five different com- 
panies of Colonel Prescott's regiment, and their names now 
appear on the bronze tablets which have been placed near the 
scene of action by the city of Boston in memory of the brave 
men who fell in that historic engagement. It is highly prob- 
able that Amos Fisk, killed in the battle, was another Groton 
soldier who fell on that day, but his name does not appear in 
the list, as there is a trifling doubt connected with the fact. 
In a newspaper account his Christian name is given as Amasa, 
which is wrong. The name of David Kemp is given on the 
tablets, but for reasons stated below has been omitted by 
me in this paper. 

Colonel Prescott, the commander of the American forces, 
was a native of Groton, and at least three of the Pepperell 
soldiers who lost their lives in the fight were also natives. 

In connection with the names that are given on the tablets 
set up by the cit}^, there is a singular error worth noting. 



9 

David Kemp, of Groton, is named as one of the men who was 
killed in the action, though fortunately he was only captured, 
and afterward taken to Halifax. By mistake he was reported 
as dying on September 10, while a prisoner in Boston, and for 
a long time his family mourned him as dead. It is not recorded 
when they first heard of his safety, but probably it was many 
montlis after the battle. 

In "The Boston-Gazette, and Country Journal" (Water- 
town), July 29, 1776, it is said: 

Last Tuesday P^vening came to town from Halifax, Lieut. Scott of 
Peterborough, in New Hampshire Government, who was wounded and 
taken Prisoner at the memorable Battle of Bunker Hill the 17tli of June, 
1775, and has been a Prisoner ever since. He informs, That he with 
13 others broke Goal about 5 Weeks ago and betook themselves to the 
Woods where they seperated ; that Captain INIartindale and his first 
and second Lieutenants, John Brown Rifleman Leonard Briggs of 
Ware [Wareham?], and himself arrived at Truro at the head of Cob- 
becut river, after a travel of 3 days, where they procured a boat and 
got to the Eastward ; that Richard Carpenter formerly Barber in this 
town, Philip Johnson Peak, David Kemp of Groton, and Corporal 
Cruse of Virginia, and two others took the road to Windsor where 
they were apprehended and confined in irons; that Benjamin Willson 
of Billerica, one of the Bunker Hill Prisoners died lately in goal ; and 
that he left Master James Lovell still confin'd, in high health and 
spirits. 

From the foregoing newspaper account it appears that 
David Kemp did not die in Boston on September 10, 1775, as 
is recorded in the Company Return among the Massachusetts 
Archives (LVI. 70); and furthermore, that he was alive 
nearly one year after the memorable engagement. The fol- 
lowing petition, printed in the Journal of the Massachusetts 
House of Representatives (page 10-4), September 13, 1776, 
gives the exact date of Kemp's escape as weU as some other 
interesting facts : 

A petition of David Kemp, of Groton, setting forth, that his son 
David Kemp, jun. a soldier in Capt. Parkers company, in Col. Pres- 
coth regiment, was taken prisoner at the Battle at Bunker s.-\\\\\, the 
17th June, 1775, and carried to Halifax, where he remained till the 
13th June last ; that he was not made up in said Parkers roll, only to 
the 17th June, therefore praying that his wages to this time may be 
allowed him. 

Read and committed to Capt. Kimball, Mr. fn(/alf and Mr. W/iile. 



10 

In connection with the facts here given it may be interest- 
ing to note the action of the General Court, taken nine months 
after the battle. It is printed in the Journal of the Massa- 
chusetts House of Representatives (page 23), and shows the 
accuracy — or the inaccuracy perhaps — of an official publi- 
cation, though in this case there were good grounds for the 
statement. 

Thursday, March 21, 1776 (Afternoon). 

An Account of Darid Kemp, for Loss of Cloaths and other Articles, 
sustained by his late Son David Kemp, taken in the Engagement on 
^Mn/;er's-Hill, on the seventeenth of June last, and since dead. 

Among my earliest recollections of boyhood was seeing a 
few old men who were known as " pensioners," but what that 
word meant, or why it was applied to them, I was wholly in 
the dark. Later I learned that they had served in the Revo- 
lution. For the most part such persons wore low-crowned 
hats with broad brims, like other old men of that period. 
Some of them, I remember, wore cues, but as their hair was 
not over-abundant, the crinal appendages were both short and 
thin. These recollections carry me back to the men who took 
an active part in the Revolution, though then they were not 
much older than those who served in the War of the Rebellion 
are now. To some of us the men who served in the cam- 
paigns of 1861-65 do not seem old, though they are no longer 
young. Doubtless the boys of to-day look upon these later 
veterans with very much the same feeling as we looked upon 
those of a former generation. To me the events connected 
with the Rebellion were burned so deeply into my very being 
and have left such clear outlines on my memory that they 
seem rather recent. I could readily believe that the first Battle 
of Bull Run was fought long after the Great Fire of Boston 
which took place thirty-seven years ago this very week. 




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